Financial Advisory
We advise both public and private sector clients on infrastructure transactions, providing financial and commercial advice from project inception through to financial close. The team has a long and successful track record of funding both primary and secondary market transactions, having structured and arranged over £7bn of debt in the project finance market.
Our Independent Financial Advice Makes Projects Happen
We work across all the main infrastructure sectors. This includes higher education and student accommodation, waste projects (both municipal and merchant), social infrastructure transactions (such as schools, hospitals and roads) and renewable energy (wind, solar and other). In addition, we also advise on commercial property transactions.
Primary Transactions
We aim to work in partnership with our clients as an integral and proactive part of their team, rather than acting purely as an external financial advisory service.
Our involvement in a project typically includes:
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Provision of commercial and structuring advice.
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Funding competitions and negotiation of debt terms.
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Structuring of the overall debt package.
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Review of funding and contractual documentation.
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Development of the financial model.
An in-depth knowledge of the project funding market is key to success given the diverse range of institutions now looking to lend to infrastructure transactions. Project finance banks, debt funds and institutions all invest in infrastructure and each has their own specific sector appetites, ticket sizes, requirements and lending characteristics. Thanks to our expert understanding of the various requirements different lenders have, we can approach the most appropriate sources to secure capital for your project.
Our team has worked with, and arranged, a broad range of debt instruments, including traditional senior debt products (fixed and index-linked), income strips and capital market solutions.
We also have relationships with a range of equity providers and strategic investors, and can advise on typical investment criteria and willingness to accept risk positions (such as volume or demand) in order to find the right partner for your project.
Secondary Market Transactions
The secondary market focuses on transactions that occur after the initial financial close. This includes areas such as refinancing, equity sales, purchases and restructuring.
Our team has advised sponsors on numerous refinancing transactions, dating back to the refinancing of a grouped schools PFI in 2005. Through out time at DWPF we have had active involvement in over 30 further projects, including portfolios transactions, as well as refinancing projects grouped together with significant new capital expenditure.
We have also worked on a number of transactions involving the sale and purchase of subordinated debt and equity stakes in projects to new parties. For these we have maximised proceeds and returns through both an attention to detail and a thorough understanding of the commercial documentation. We have acted for both investors seeking to acquire stakes, as well as structuring the sales process on behalf of selling parties.
Public Sector Advisory
We work with public sector parties on the procurement of PFI/PPP assets, including the drafting of tender documentation, management of the finance dialogue process and assessment of tenders, prior to working with preferred bidders through to financial close.
Our services to the public sector also includes the appraisal of sponsor led refinancing proposals, ensuring gain share payments are value for money (given the potential for increased termination liabilities), assessing the potential for the public sector to make operational savings on PFI/PPP projects, as well as having acted as an expert witness in cases of dispute.